Flights were temporarily restricted in Russia's Saratov region on Monday due to a drone attack by Ukraine, which also left a woman seriously wounded, according to Russian officials and news agencies. The incident occurred when falling debris from drones, destroyed by Russia's air defence systems, struck a residential complex in the city of Saratov. Roman Basurgin, the regional governor, reported on the Telegram messaging app, stating, "A woman was hospitalised in serious condition. Doctors are fighting for her life."

The Russian Defence Ministry confirmed that nine drones were intercepted and destroyed over the Saratov region, which is located approximately 900 kilometres (560 miles) from the Ukrainian border. Following the attack, the regional Saratov airport restricted flights, as reported by Russia's RIA news agencies, citing information from the airport's press service. However, these flight restrictions were later lifted, according to a report by Reuters.

Governor Basurgin mentioned that emergency services were deployed to affected areas in both Saratov and Engels, key cities within the region that are located several hundred kilometres southeast of Moscow. Engels houses a strategic bomber military base, which has been targeted multiple times by Ukrainian forces since Russia initiated its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. There was no immediate information on whether the military base sustained any damage during the latest attack.

Video footage shared on Telegram by the Russian news channel SHOT depicted a high-rise residential building in Saratov with visible damage, including a partially destroyed side and several windows blown out across three floors. Additional damage was reported in Engels, where the top floor of a residential building was affected.

As of now, there has been no official comment from Ukraine regarding the incident. Both Russia and Ukraine continue to deny targeting civilians in their respective attacks, emphasising that their military actions are focused on destroying infrastructure critical to the ongoing conflict.

Image source: Reuters